The present invention relates to a device for mixing at least two products which, usually for reasons of stability, cannot be mixed until the time of use. By way of example, mention may be made of certain hair coloration products, obtained from a mixture of a colorant and an oxidizing agent.
By way of further example, mention may be made of mixtures of which one component is vitamin C, for example, in the form of a powder.
There is known, particularly from FR-A-2,129,079, a mixer consisting of a first reservoir equipped with a dispensing orifice, a second cylindrical reservoir having one of its ends contiguous with the first reservoir and closed at both ends by removable walls which can be pierced by a chamfered tube which can move between (i) a position in which it lies outside the two reservoirs and (ii) a position in which it passes longitudinally through the second reservoir and opens into the first reservoir, thus placing the two reservoirs in communication. A container of this type may separately contain, in the first reservoir, a first product such as a liquid and, in the second reservoir, a second product such as a powder.
There is also known from FR-A-2,722,765, a mixer which allows at least two products to be stored and to be mixed, and allows the mixture thus obtained to be dispensed. The mixer described in this document is of the same type as the one described in FR-A-2,129,079. However, the moving part intended to place the two reservoirs in communication includes a transverse wall which constitutes the bottom wall of the second reservoir and is located, when the moving part is in a first position, from the mouth of the second reservoir, by a distance which is roughly equal to or is greater than the travel of the moving part.
Thus, as the moving part is moved into a second position, the volume of the second reservoir is reduced until it becomes zero, so that the two products contained in the respective reservoirs mix suitably, regardless of the orientation of the container. The transverse wall of the moving part is flat and surrounded by a chamfered edge, the upper end of which lies in a plane which is inclined with respect to a plane perpendicular to the direction of travel of the moving part.
None of these devices is without its drawbacks, particularly as far as the packaging of a sensitive powder, particularly one sensitive to oxygen, is concerned. This is because, in the case of these oxygen-sensitive products, it is necessary to reduce the volume of air formed above the volume of powder. With a design like the one described hereinabove, removing the separation between the two reservoirs is not achieved quickly, and this can cause an appreciable compacting of the powder before the separation means can be removed. Lumps of powder, the solubility of which is not as good as that of a loose powder, are thus formed. As a result, the quality of the mixture may prove insufficient.
Furthermore, if the axial height of the skirt forming the chamfered edge is increased so as to reduce the time needed to remove the separation between the two volumes, the volume available for the powder is reduced correspondingly.
Other mixing devices exhibiting drawbacks of the same type as those discussed hereinabove are described in FR-1,542,467, and in FR-A-2,239,390.
Hence, one of the objects of the invention is to provide a device for mixing at least two products, one of which may be a powder, and which has a separating structure which, on the one hand, in the storage position, provides good separation of the products in their respective reservoirs and, on the other hand, can be released quickly.
Another object of the invention is to provide a device suited to the mixing of two products of which one is, in particular, in pulverized form, and in which the volume available for the powder is improved by comparison with the conventional devices.
A further object of the invention is to provide a mixing device suited for mixing two products, of which one, for example, is in pulverized form, and which appreciably reduces the risk of the powder becoming compacted while the separating structure between the two reservoirs is being removed.
It should be understood that the invention could still be practiced without performing one or more of the preferred objects and/or advantages set forth above. Still other objects will become apparent after reading the following description of the invention.
To achieve these and other advantages, and in accordance with the purposes of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, the invention includes a mixing device.
According to the invention, a device for mixing at least two products includes a first container containing a first product, and a second container containing a second product, the first and second containers being separated in sealed fashion by a removable stopper, the mixing device further comprising a flexible finger coupled to an operating member and capable, in response to actuation of the operating member, of engaging the stopper and flexing elastically into a position of abutment against a stop borne by the stopper, the flexible finger in this abutment position forming a buttress-like prop capable of moving the stopper so as to allow the first and second products to be mixed.
Since the finger is flexible, it allows it to occupy a small volume by comparison with the volume it would occupy if it were rigid. The volume available for the powder is therefore greater. Mounting the finger in such a way as to cause it to form a buttress-like prop when mixing is to be performed allows the stopper to be released even if the stopper is held very firmly, and allows this to be performed very quickly thus avoiding, when the second product is a powder, compacting the powder before the stopper has been released.
Advantageously, the flexible finger is brought into engagement with the stopper in a region located between a peripheral edge of the stopper for catching on the device, and an annular rim forming the stop on the stopper, the annular rim being concentric with the peripheral edge. A configuration of this kind is particularly advantageous in that it further reduces the time needed to release the stopper member. Such release is also possible regardless of the angular position of the flexible finger with respect to the stopper.
As a preference, the flexible finger is brought into engagement with the stopper via a rotary movement having an axial component, preferably a helical movement, in the direction of the stopper.
Advantageously, the stopper has a concave, particularly a conical, profile, capable of encouraging the finger to flex towards the stop, this further contributing to facilitating the expulsion of the stopper.
According to a preferred embodiment, the mixing device according to the present invention comprises a first container containing the first product and including a first opening intended to be placed in communication with a dispensing orifice, and a second opening, an intermediate element mounted fixedly on the second opening of the first container, the intermediate element having a first skirt, on a free edge of which the stopper is mounted, the first skirt partially defining the second container, and an operating member, one wall of which forms a moving bottom wall for the second container, the wall bearing the flexible finger, a free end of which is configured to be brought into engagement with the stopper, the operating member including at least one coupling element engaging at least one ramp, particularly a helical ramp, formed by the intermediate element so that, in response to a rotation of the operating member with respect to the intermediate element, the flexible finger can be carried along towards the stopper to cause its release, and the axial movement of the moving bottom wall inside the skirt so that the mixture produced is contained more or less inside the first container.
As a preference, the stopper is force-fitted inside the free edge of the first skirt. A fit of this type ensures that the stopper is held firmly enough on the skirt which defines the second container, even in the presence of a raised pressure associated, in particular, with a rise in temperature inside the mixing device.
The at least one ramp formed by the intermediate element may be formed by a second skirt, concentric with the first and with an inside diameter that is greater than the outside diameter of the first skirt. The first and second skirts advantageously define an annular groove, preferably a U-shaped groove, capable of receiving the free edge of the container defining the second opening, and of allowing the intermediate element to catch on the first container. The intermediate element may be caught on the upper container, particularly by snap-fastening. As a preference, in the position in which the intermediate element is mounted on the first container, that end of the skirt which bears the stopper is engaged inside the neck delimiting the second opening.
As a preference, the flexible finger consists of a skirt portion located near a peripheral edge of the wall that forms the moving bottom wall. Such a skirt portion has a thickness which, preferably, may be of the order of one millimeter, giving it preferred flexibility properties. The flexible finger preferably extends over an axial height roughly equal to the axial height of the first skirt. This feature makes it possible for the stopper to be released very quickly, that is to say, enabling only a very small angular rotation of the operating member with respect to the intermediate element, thus not appreciably reducing the volume available for the powder.
As a preference, the stopper is released after the operating member has been rotated less than 360xc2x0 with respect to the intermediate element, and preferably has been rotated from 90xc2x0 to 180xc2x0.
Preferably too, the skirt portion extends over an angular sector of from 20xc2x0 to 90xc2x0, preferably from 45xc2x0 to 70xc2x0.
According to an advantageous embodiment, a pump is mounted in the first opening so as to allow the mixture to be dispensed through the dispensing orifice. The pump may be screwed onto a neck of the first container delimiting the first opening. A dip tube may be connected to the pump and dip down practically to the bottom of the first container, means being provided to prevent the dipped tube from interfering with the release of the stopper. Alternatively, the mixture may be dispensed without using a dip tube, with the mixing device in a head-down position.
The various parts of the device may each be obtained by molding from a thermoplastic, such as a polyethylene or polypropylene. However, one of the containers, especially the upper container, may be made of glass, depending on the product that is to be packaged therein.
The mixing device according to the present invention is particularly suited to producing a mixture, particularly a mixture having a cosmetic action, the first product preferably being a liquid, the second product preferably being a powder, particularly vitamin C.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a mixing device for mixing two different products is provided. The mixing device includes a first container for containing a first product, a second container for containing a second product, a removable stopper configured to seal the first container from the second container, and an operating member having a flexible finger configured to engage and move the removable stopper from a sealing position upon actuation of the operating member so as to permit mixing of first and second products.
According to another aspect of the invention, a method of mixing a first product and a second product is provided. The method includes providing a mixing device comprising a first container for containing a first product, a second container for containing a second product, a removable stopper configured to seal the first container from the second container, and an operating member having a flexible finger configured to engage and move the removable stopper from a sealing position upon actuation of the operating member so as to permit mixing of first and second products, the mixing device containing a liquid product in the first container and a powdered product in the second container, rotating the operating member, removing the removable stopper from a sealed position between the first and second containers, and mixing the liquid product and the powdered product to produce a final product.
According to yet another aspect of the invention, a mixing device for mixing at least two different products is provided. The mixing device comprises an upper container for containing a first product, a lower container for containing a second product, a releasable sealing element between the upper container and the lower container, and a flexible finger within the lower container, the flexible finger configured to engage and release the sealing element from a sealing position between the containers so as to permit mixing of first and second products.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, a method of mixing a first product and a second product is provided. The method includes providing a mixing device comprising an upper container for containing a first product, a lower container for containing a second product, a releasable sealing element between the upper container and the lower container, and a flexible finger within the lower container, the flexible finger configured to engage and release the sealing element from a sealing position between the containers so as to permit mixing of first and second products, the mixing device containing a liquid product in the upper container and a powdered product in the lower container, axially moving the flexible finger toward the releasable sealing element, releasing the sealing element from a sealing position between the upper and lower containers, and mixing the liquid product and the powdered product to produce a final product.
Beside the structural arrangements set forth above, the invention could include a number of other arrangements, such as those explained hereinafter. It is to be understood that both the foregoing description and the following description are exemplary, and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.